![]() ![]() Rittenhouse Successfully Argues Self-Defense This post attempts to cut through the noise and answer the question of why the jury found Rittenhouse not guilty. Later, amid the tumult, Rittenhouse managed to get past a police line with his weapon slung over his shoulder and was not arrested that night.After several days of jury deliberation, Kyle Rittenhouse was found not guilty last week of murdering two people and injuring another during racial justice protests last summer in Kenosha, Wisconsin.Īctivists on both sides of the political spectrum were quick to spin what the verdict meant for their movements or what the judge's and jury's motivations were. On the night of the shootings, law enforcement officers saw Rittenhouse and other armed people on the streets despite a curfew and gave them bottles of water, with one officer heard saying over a loudspeaker, “We appreciate you guys.” Some civil rights activists saw a racial double standard in the way the white gunman was treated. Rittenhouse’s lawyers branded Rosenbaum a “crazy person.” A videographer testified Rosenbaum lunged for the rifle just before he was shot, and a pathologist said his injuries appeared to indicate his hand was over the barrel.Īlso, Rosenbaum’s fiancee disclosed that he was on medication for bipolar disorder and depression. Witnesses described Rosenbaum as “hyperaggressive” and said that he dared others to shoot him and threatened to kill Rittenhouse earlier that night. Video and testimony from some of the prosecution’s own witnesses seemed to buttress Rittenhouse’s claim of self-defense. The judge also let Rittenhouse himself draw juror numbers from a raffle drum to set the final 12 who deliberated. ![]() Schroeder’s handling of the trial drew attention at several points, including when he led applause for military veterans on Veterans Day just before a defense witness who had been in the Army was about to take the stand. But Judge Bruce Schroeder threw out that charge before jury deliberations after the defense argued that the Wisconsin law did not apply to the long-barreled rifle used by Rittenhouse. Rittenhouse had also been charged with possession of a dangerous weapon by a person under 18, a misdemeanor that had appeared likely to lead to a conviction. Rittenhouse could have gotten life in prison if found guilty on the most serious charge, first-degree intentional homicide, or what some other states call first-degree murder. The jury, which appeared to be overwhelmingly white, deliberated for close to 3 1/2 days. The former police youth cadet is white, as were those he shot. He had been charged with homicide, attempted homicide and reckless endangering after killing two men and wounding a third with an AR-style semi-automatic rifle during a tumultuous night of protests over police violence against Black people in the summer of 2020. Rittenhouse, 18, cried and hugged one of his attorneys upon hearing the verdict. (AP) - Kyle Rittenhouse was acquitted of all charges Friday after pleading self-defense in the deadly Kenosha shootings that became a flashpoint in the nation’s debate over guns, vigilantism and racial injustice. Please look at the time stamp on the story to see when it was last updated. This is an archived article and the information in the article may be outdated. ![]()
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